A LOCAL action group is hoping to persuade Forest of Dean District Council to rethink the Preferred Option of its Local Plan for a 5,000-home settlement at Churcham in a meeting of full council this week.

The group, called No New Towns, will present a “landmark” 7,000-signature petition opposing the development to the council this Thursday (May 20).

In what is described as “the biggest planning application the Forest has ever seen”, the district authority revealed plans for the large-scale development in the vicinity of the A40 and A48 back in January following a Freedom of Information request by the action group.

The council has identified the new settlement as its Preferred Option to meet the government’s housing allocation figures for the district in its Local Plan, which will set out how the Forest of Dean will develop over the next 20 years to 2041.

The action group is made up of six local parish councils as well as other individuals and organisations that would be affected by the Churcham development.

Thursday’s meeting will mark the first time in the council’s 48-year history that a petition has gained enough support, with 25% of the votes cast in the last district election, to be put before full council.

Group leader Councillor John Francis, chair of Churcham Parish Council, will make a presentation about the petition, which was launched ahead of public knowledge of the impending public consultation on the Local Plan and “stands in its own right” as a democratic representation specifically against a new town in Churcham.

“For the Forest of Dean District Council to pursue the preferred option in the face of so much opposition is staggering”, Cllr Francis said ahead of the meeting.

“The petition against the preferred option equates to 25% of the total vote cast for all district councillors in the last election. The groundswell of support and outrage is palpable in the community.

“This is a time to work with the community to benefit all, not just create profits for developers that have a track record of not delivering for the community.”

The group would like to see development dispersed throughout the Forest rather than in one “Coleford-sized” new town on a greenfield site, which they say would be damaging “environmentally, economically and socially” as well as causing “major gridlock” on both the A40 and A48, which are the main arterial routes between Gloucester, the Forest of Dean and Monmouthshire.

Forest of Dean MP Mark Harper is backing the dispersal strategy, along with local business chiefs, several district and county councillors and hundreds of local residents, who have aired their views on social media.

The council is opposed to that approach because it believes that adding more homes to existing communities would potentially do more harm than good, with forward plans manager Nigel Gibbons saying in March that dispersing the development would “load a number of areas with insufficient capacity for transport and environmental considerations.”

Developer Robert Hitchens published its ambitious “West of Severn” scheme earlier this year.

The scheme would involve the construction of two new roundabouts off the A40, three schools, a business park, a railway station, a park and ride and sport facilities in addition to the 5,000 homes.

The action group established a communications campaign following its Freedom of Information request to encourage local residents to have their say on the developments during a public consultation period, which has now ended.

A spokesperson for the group, 27-year-old Hannah Freeman, said of the campaign: “The communication group was formed to educate the local population of the impending consultation period and alert them on how they could have their say regarding the councillors’ decisions.

“Through successful social media campaigns, leaflets, banners and press articles, the public swamped the councillors’ inboxes.

“This multi-channel campaign during lockdown paved the way to reaching more than 50,000 people, as well as gaining over 7,000 signatures on our petition.

“Keeping the public engaged, within the most pivotal decision regarding the Forest of Dean’s future, is critical.

“Although the consultation period has now closed, our job is more important than ever. We will work alongside supportive stakeholders including Mark Harper MP, councillors, key business figures and the public to ensure we hold the council accountable and achieve the best outcome for the future of the Forest of Dean.”

An extension to the public consultation was refused during lockdown and the group were unable to leaflet residents during that period.

The group say they had to “resort” to Freedom of Information requests to ascertain that Churcham was the designated greenfield site for the new settlement, which if approved, would be home to around 10,000 people.

At an online meeting in March, district councillor Chris McFarling, who is cabinet member for climate and planning, said that construction of the homes would start in 2030 if the plans win approval.